So, you’ve got a show coming up, or maybe you’re just about to reveal a new collection. Perhaps you’ve updated your website or have an online shop to launch. Quite rightly, social media is going to be high on your list of ways to promote this event, but how to keep it from sounding rather same-y after a while, and saturating your audience with the same information? Tell the story ten ways.
Effective marketing works by repeat exposure – you need to remind your audience many times before the information sinks in. But, this doesn’t mean it has to be exactly the same each time. By using varied text and images, you’ll create awareness of your work in a way that is dynamic and interesting without that feeling of ‘seen it before’. [It’s probably worth mentioning here that I believe each social media outlet has its own distinct strength in reaching your audience. As such, I don’t really agree with simultaneous cross-posting on all your social media platforms – you should be tailoring your content to the situation and your audience. If I follow you on Instagram and Twitter and Facebook (chances are I will if I like your work) then I don’t want to see the same post on all platforms at the same time: it feels like lazy communication.]
With this technique – Tell it ten ways – you’ll generate a lot of different posts, so there will be no need to use the same text everywhere at the same time (it’s not a problem to re-use the posts on other platforms, on another day, so long as the content is relevant to the audience).
What to do
Start by identifying the main points you need to highlight: what is the essential information (eg dates, times, location, theme, details about products etc)? Write a list of key words or phrases.
Now, try writing 10 versions of this information (the shorter the better: tweet length or 2-3 sentences is ideal, even for Instagram and Facebook). Make sure you cover everything that is essential.
Once you’ve written 10 posts with this basic, essential information, try writing 10 more that focus on the emotive, sensory and storytelling aspects of the work/event.
[This is really hard to do! It will be challenging and frustrating, but stick with it. By pushing past where you would normally stop, you should find ways to describe your work that go beyond the old familiar words you rely on. This is how fresh ideas are born.]
Now you have 20 completely different social media posts ready to go!
Draw up a social media plan/timetable, create your list of hashtags (your keywords will help with this), draft and schedule your posts (in an app like Hootsuite) and your promotion will take care of itself.
*If you are looking for support with your social media marketing, I can whole-heartedly recommend seeking the help of Rosalind Davis. Rosalind runs courses and masterclasses in social media marketing and I find her approach, which is to foster an online culture of connection, authenticity and empowerment, beyond mere self-promotion, really positive.